Every successful struggle has a turning point. A few have more. But every conflict in history has at least one point where things were hurtling downhill before some noteworthy event sparked a stirring revival that change the course of the fight; an incident, or series of incidents, that transform the fear of defeat into realistic hope of victory.

The Battle of Stalingrad was seen as one such point in WWII, or Americans might choose the Invasion Of Normandy. Had they not triumphed in the Battle Of Gettysberg, President Abraham Lincoln and the Northern States would probably have lost the American Civil War and slavery would have been entrenched in the USA for another generation, maybe longer. And the fight for Indian independence might not have taken root when it did had the Gandhi led Salt March not occurred.

Thirteen years ago exactly, at the Eden Gardens, Calcutta, the mighty Australians were locked in conflict with an Indian team they had easily disposed of less than two weeks before. The visitors had won the first test at the Wankhede Stadium by 10 wickets in less than three days, and had India in a corner when they asked them to follow-on 274 runs behind.

What came next was nothing short of a miracle. VVS Laxman, whose 167 at Sydney in January 2000 was then the lone test hundred to his name, played the innings of his life. Last out for 59, batting at six in the first innings, he was promoted to three in the second and arrived at the wicket with India 52/1. From there he fashioned an innings as unlikely and as sublime as the cricketing world had ever seen, guiding his side to 657/7 declared. His 281 lasted 452 balls and spanned 632 minutes, and in the company of Rahul Dravid, with whom he had switched places in the batting order, constructed a platform from which they contrived a most improbable victory.

Dravids 180 was itself a masterful display, but it was Laxman who grabbed the headlines. His mouth-watering repertoire was unveiled for all to look on and drool. It is unlikely any other batsmen could have lorded it over McGrath and Warne and Gillespie the way he did, and his innings was immediately acclaimed as one of the best in test history.

Few would have conceived that such an innings were possible. Fewer still possessed the skill to play it or even the courage to attempt it. Most would have sought to batten down the hatches as if preparing for an oncoming hurricane; and not many would have pushed back with such aplomb and forcefulness.

Considering the way the first test turned out, and the depths to which India had sunk by the third day of the second, not many entertained thoughts of India achieving a draw, much less a victory. The hosts were staring at what was thought, at the time, to be certain defeat. It required something extraordinary to shift the trajectory of the game, the series, and the Hyderabadi batsmans career.

Laxmans masterpiece also changed the trajectory of Indian cricket. Confidence was heightened and a new level of respect was demanded from opponents. This is how he put it in an interview with Wisden India a year ago:

That knock gave me the confidence that what I was doing in domestic cricket, I could do at international level as well. Equally important, it changed our mindset as a team. It instilled in us the belief that we must never give up. If 167 changed the way I viewed cricket, 281 altered the cricket worlds perception of IndiaDuring my career, the team was to be in such situations many times later, including in Adelaide 2003-04. We remembered what happened in Kolkata, and the rest, as they say, is history.

That this was a turning point in Indian cricket is not mere speculation. The results show that India became a much more competitive side abroad while maintaining their supremacy, for the most part, at home. Winning games in England, Australia and South Africa, almost unheard of prior to Eden Gardens 2001, were no longer out of the question.

One manifestation of the new found belief that Laxman mentioned was Indias ascension to the top of the test rankings in November 2009, remaining there for 15 months until dethroned by England. They also won the 2007 T20 World Cup and were 2011 World Cup champions. They still are not the best travelers around, but expectations are now much higher.

It has now been 13 years since the Eden Gardens miracle and Laxman has since retired from international cricket. In August 2012 the Hyderabad Cricket association named the Northern Pavilion of the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium after the great batsman. It was a well-deserved honour for the man who played a major role in instigating a turning point in Indian cricket.